10th Annual SHFCA Conference 26/09/18

The 10th annual conference for the Scottish Hydrogen Fuel Cell Association (SHFCA) was held yesterday at the Apex Hotel, Dundee. The conference was preceded by a civic reception and dinner the evening before at The Discovery Point, with a welcome provided by the Depute Lord Provost of Dundee. This location was fittingly chosen following the opening of the V&A museum and allowed the conference delegates a chance to admire newly regenerated waterfront. The V&A museum is projected to attract up to 500,000 visitors to the area in its first year of opening.

As a partner of the Tay Cities Deal, Fife Council will be working closely with Dundee City Council and the other partners to invest and attract investment in low carbon technologies across the region. Invest in Fife were delighted to attend this year's conference on behalf of Fife Council, who are supporting partners of SHFCA.

The conference highlighted Scotland as a dynamic location for hydrogen projects, being home to H2 Aberdeen, The Levenmouth Community Energy Project, Surf ‘n’ Turf & BIG HIT, the recently announced ITEG EMEC project and the HySeas III. Between these projects, Scotland has been able to demonstrate a wide range of capabilities within the hydrogen and fuel cell market.

During the course of the day, speaker presentations covered the Scottish, UK and global policy and market perspectives, the challenges faced by the industry as well as the opportunities, successes and existing projects.

Fife has embraced innovation and pushed barriers in order to demonstrate their contribution to the hydrogen industry. In the process, Fife has grown as a hub of learning, demonstration and future potential. Fife Council have helped support the integration of first time designs associated with the Levenmouth Project and have been leading in the deployment of hydrogen vehicles into an operational Council fleet. Fife Council continue to explore forward-thinking solutions ahead of their carbon emission reduction targets of 42% by 2020 and 80% by 2050. Looking ahead, the Council is hoping to see Fife selected as the chosen site for SGN’s Hydrogen 100 project, which will demonstrate the decarbonisation of heat through the use of hydrogen in the gas grid.

Fife is well positioned to maintain and grow their involvement in the hydrogen industry and will be a major link in connecting up the hydrogen supply chain for the East Coast of Scotland. Fife's expansion within the sector will benefit the Scottish hydrogen economy and will hopefully see a future that offers opportunities for collaborative working and shared learning across Fife, Dundee and wider afield.

To find out more about the work SHFCA does, visit their website at: http://www.shfca.org.uk/